WIRE-ELECTRO-DISCHARGE MACHINING OF POLYCRISTALLINE DIAMOND

The present work is an experimental investigation of Wire Electro Discharge Machining of Polycrystalline diamond grade CTB010 (10 μm average grain size). The Taguchi design of experiments was adopted to obtain the optimum conditions of the process parameters through the study of signal- noise (S/N) ratio for surface finish and cutting speed. The ANOVA analysis has been used to predict the significant machining parameters and develop a regression equation to model the machining process. Two L9 orthogonal arrays were developed in order to study the pulse generator parameters (on time off time and servo voltage) and the physical constraints parameters (wire tension, wire unspooling speed and injection pressure). The research was driven by industry’s necessity for achieving better results in their actual process; Element Six, how provided the PCD material for the research. A final test was performed using a relatively five coated wires, one of them was a new development wire provided from the company Erodex. The samples were measured with a confocal microscope.